


Mousetrap Heart

by hiza-chan (callunavulgari)



Series: Mousetrap Heart [1]
Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Genderswap
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-03-31
Updated: 2012-03-31
Packaged: 2017-11-02 19:04:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,242
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/372309
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/callunavulgari/pseuds/hiza-chan
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>But the point of the story is this: that he meets her.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Mousetrap Heart

**Author's Note:**

> It isn't a secret that I like playing with genderswap, and while logically, I definitely could have kept Axel male, I wanted to play with girl!Axel for a day. Written for gold_panner, who probably doesn't even remember requesting this. Prompt was the song, Mousetrap Heart.

He meets her in the Arena District. Or at least, he thinks he does. Not only does he have mass quantities of tequila sloshing about his gut (courtesy of his big brother, thank him ever so much) but he's also pretty sure that he lost his shoes somewhere south of High Street. So, he's having a bit of a rough day.  
  
Riku's at his shoulder, one hand at the small of his back- probably in case he collapses again, and Sora's somewhere ahead of them, shouting about how much he loves big cities.  
  
It's perhaps not the most dignified that he's ever been, and he knows it.  
  
But the point of the story is this: that he meets her.  
  
Red hair, denim jeans that are thankfully free of rhinestones, a tattered Nirvana t-shirt that hangs off her pale shoulders like she bought it three sizes too big, and these big, playful green eyes that crinkle when she smiles. She's smiling now- laughing at something her friend's said to her, head thrown back and eyes crinkled and dimples kissing her cheeks.  
  
There's a tattoo on her shoulder that he can't quite make out, and another one- a pair of them just above her dimples.  
  
She's sitting on the side of a fountain, a really stupid spectacle of architecture with a giant spiky pineapple at the very top, one heeled boot tapping out some unknown rhythm against the side. Her friends- well, her friend's don't really matter. He gives himself time to note that there's another girl with blond hair, a guy with some kind of faux-hawk, and another dude with a fucking patch over his eye before he gets distracted by the way the orange light spills over her collarbone.  
  
"Roxas- hey, _Roxas_."  
  
Sora's talking to him, isn't he? See, this wouldn't be as embarrassing if _meeting her_ consisted of something besides him gaping drunkenly at her from across the square. He should probably fix that. March right over and ask her what her name is, and then maybe declare his love for her and whisk her away to Paris or Rome or someplace where they can share a joint love of architecture and 90s grunge rock. He hopes she likes architecture. Would she? Well, no, she probably wouldn't. None of his other girlfriends had. Hell, neither have any of his boyfriends. Shame, that.  
  
"Holy crap, Sora, how much did you give him?"  
  
"He only drank a little more than me, I swear-"  
  
"You swear? He's caught his face with the concrete no less than seven times since we left the bar, Sora. _Seven_."  
  
"...Roxas?"  
  
He sounds concerned now. Maybe Roxas should answer.  
  
"I think I'm in love."  
  
Okay, maybe that wasn't the best answer. To their left, Riku makes a choked sound in the back of his throat. Sora just looks puzzled. "Love?"  
  
Roxas nods vigorously, and glances back towards her. She's smirking now, flicking water at her friend and _oh god, that smirk had no right being that attractive._ "I think I'm gonna go tell her."  
  
Riku and Sora splutter into nervous activity, Sora pitching forward in a drunken attempt to grab his hand, Riku sliding in behind him to more gracefully grab a fistful of his collar.  
  
"Yeah, sorry kid, but I'm pretty sure some chick isn't gonna want some dude who reeks of alcohol to tell her he's in love with her. You might puke on her. Or worse, drown her in the fountain when you inevitably fall in."  
  
He wouldn't- well, okay, maybe the fountain thing is a possibility, but he'd definitely do his best to fall _away_ from her. He tells Riku this, who just laughs. Sora's eyes are huge, hazy with alcohol and ridiculously imploring. He looks like they're in third grade again and Roxas had a crush on the same girl he did. He's wailing something, "You _can't_ go over there, Roxas, you _can't_."  
  
Roxas goes back to eying the pretty redhead.  
  
She's moved now- standing over the guy with the faux-hawk with her hands on her hips. He's waving his hands, protesting something and Roxas grins and thinks, _she's going to push him in_ , about five seconds before she does just that.  
  
And then it happens. The moment. When Elizabeth Bennett sees Mr. Darcy crossing the misty field. When King Arthur spies on Guinevere from the branches of a tree. When Wichita presses a loaded shotgun to Columbus' chest and he realizes he wants to brush her stupid hair behind her stupid ear. When Romeo meets Juliet and forgets all about his ex. When- okay, well, whatever. _IT_ happens.  
  
As she's turning back around, brushing her hands off, their eyes meet. Lock and hold, that "eyes meeting across a crowded room" scenario that never actually happens, and Roxas is up and walking across the street before Sora can do more than hiss his name.  
  
When he reaches her, she looks like she's torn between wary and amused and her friends look- well, they look weirdly assessing. And quiet. And in faux-hawk dude's case, extremely wet.  
  
"Hi."  
  
Right, this is why he wasn't supposed to do this. Drunk. He kind of sympathizes with the horrified look Riku has on his face right now. That little wave of his hand was probably worse than the fact that he's about to tip over onto the sidewalk.  
  
The girl just smirks and returns the wave. "Hello," she says with the hint of an accent, Russian or German or something, and oh my god, okay, he hasn't freaked out about a girl like this since he met Namine in the fifth grade and actually managed to yank on her pigtails.  
  
And this can't actually get any worse than it already is, so he just lets his mouth get away from him. "I'm Roxas," and, "Do you like architecture?" and, "because I think I'm in love with you a little."  
  
Her friend, the blond one, scoffs and hisses, "oh my god, Ax, _really?_ " and the one with the patch is kind of stifling his laughter with the back of his hand and Sora and Riku are crossing the street, lips already forming apologies. But Roxas--- Roxas can only see this girl, whose smirking softly and tapping the toe of one boot against the cobblestone and _not_ storming off in a fit of offended sobriety. She thrusts her hand out and the smirk turns into a grin, dimples and all.  
  
"I'm Axel" and "I love architecture, I went to Paris my sophomore year of college," and "how about you call me when you're sober?" and then grabs his wrist, yanking a pen from behind faux-hawk kid's ear before scribbling something that he assumes is her number across his forearm.  
  
And then the blond friend is pulling her away, while she laughs and keeps glancing over her shoulder at him. Faux-hawk kid stops and gives him a huge wet hug, whispering a cheerful "good luck, man!" before he flounces off after them.  
  
Riku and Sora are gaping behind him. He just knows it.  
  
"Did that really just happen?" Sora asks, and yes, _yes, it really did._  
  
.  
  
Turns out, she wasn't lying about liking architecture. And yes, they do go to Italy, and among other things, like board games and maps and N64 games and cigarettes and fire and Chinese food and many, many other things, they do share an intense mutual love of 90s grunge rock and the crumbling walls of Pompeii.


End file.
